Vet Accused Of Mistreating Pets

Ex-employees, Dog Owner Testify

POQUOSON — A Poquoson veterinarian has until early January to decide whether to accept a reprimand and pay a fine or ask for an administrative hearing on charges that he abused and mistreated animals.

Several employees, former employees and a pet owner testified in a hearing that Harry E. McBrayer Jr. mistreated animals, said Wayne Farrar, spokesman for the Virginia Department of Health Professions.

In one case, McBrayer allegedly swung a dog by its leash from side to side until it could not breathe.

``You then placed your hands around the dog's throat in a choke position until the dog went limp, made gurgling noises and defecated on the table,'' according to a letter sent to McBrayer from the Virginia Board of Veterinary Medicine.

McBrayer owns and operates the Oxford Run Veterinary Hospital on Wythe Creek Road in Poquoson.

A two-member committee of the state board recommended the $1,000 fine and reprimand against McBrayer after a lengthy informal hearing Dec. 7 in Richmond, said Farrar.

The allegations against McBrayer were divided in three categories: mistreatment of animals; allowing an unlicensed staff member to administer medication and anesthesia and perform other tasks for which she was not licensed; and administering medication that had expired, according to the panel's Sept. 15 letter to McBrayer.

McBrayer has been licensed since 1975 and is a former member of the veterinary board, the group that would hear the charges should he decide to contest the disciplinary action to the full board in a formal hearing, Farrar said.

Avril Ogilvie was one of two former employees who testified against McBrayer at the hearing. Ogilvie said Wednesday she and a co-worker, Susan Smethurst, were fired by McBrayer after he learned they were documenting cases of alleged abuse.

One former customer, Michelle A.P. Daill, told the panel that she saw McBrayer choke her dog so tightly that her dog's eyes bulged out of her head ``so far and she was gasping for breath that I thought she was going to die,'' Ogilvie said.

McBrayer brought several staff members who disputed the allegations, Farrar said.

``He brought three or four staff members who testified on his behalf that what the other people said they saw did not happen. If he used force or restraint on some of the animals, it was not excessive,'' Farrar said McBrayer's witnesses testified.

The panel found ``clear and convincing evidence'' that some but not all of the alleged abuse cases occurred. The panel also substantiated the other allegations against McBrayer.

The panel notified McBrayer of the proposed reprimand and fine in a letter Monday, Farrar said. The action would not restrict his practice, and McBrayer has 21 days from receipt of the letter to respond.

McBrayer can either accept the punishment or contest it and ask for an administrative hearing before the six-member Board of Veterinary Medicine. A hearing could result in revocation of his license or suspension, Farrar said.